The bike friendly communities in the Western U.S. make it easy for bike commuters to unwind and enjoy the ride home after a long workday. Most neighborhoods in cities like Portland, Denver, and Seattle are connected through bike trails and streets with bike-only lanes.

Even with the considerable efforts in bike-friendly communities, riding quickly becomes unfriendly when day turns to night. Most bike related accidents happen when the sun has fallen over the horizon.

A bike with a high quality lighting system is needed to increase your safety riding after dark. The Light & Motion VIS 360 offers several features and advantages for your commutes to work, the gym, and other daily hot spots.

The most noticeable feature is the mounting of the VIS 360. It mounts on your helmet instead of your handlebar and seat post. The mounting brackets are easily mounted using the vents on your helmet.

The light beam follows your line of vision. Since it's located higher than a handlebar mount, it can be seen easier by trucks and SUV. Your lighting system goes with you and your helmet when your bike is parked which almost eliminates it being stolen.

A small LED headlight that pumps out 110 lumens is coupled with a taillight with 4 lumens. Light & Motion integrates an amber light on each side of the front-mounted headlight, so you are seen by vehicles approaching from all sides. Light & Sound lists the VIS 360 as weighing 130 grams. The unit feels weightless on your brain bucket.

A concern with any bike lighting system is the brightness of the headlight. The Light & Motion VIS 360 is incredibly bright and can easily be seen from approaching cars from several blocks away. The amber sidelights were surprisingly visible which gives you added safety at a four-way intersection.

Light & Motion has built in three settings to the VIS 360. You can choose to have the headlight shine a constant beam (high or low intensity) or flashing.

Whichever setting you choose will affect how long the Li-ion rechargeable battery will last until it's drained. The Light & Motion 360 has a micro-USB port in the taillight for charging, and a USB cable comes with purchase.

Jason Elliot is the Editor and Publisher of OutdoorInformer.com. Elliot has established a respected following with the top industry professionals and gearheads for his nonbiased reviews of outdoor gear and apparel. Elliot is a regular contributor to Examiner.com, Trails.com and other publications on top of his editorial and writing role with OutdoorInformer.com.

Elliot left a successful fifteen-plus year management career that he worked at Fortune 500 and S&P 500 companies to pursue his passion for writing about the outdoors. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Clarion University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree from La Roche College.